Summer Work Travel Program and the National Parks: Acadia National Park and Beyond

Expedition National Parks

29-09-2020 • 26 mins

The second and final part of our series on the  Summer Work Travel (SWT) program (bit.ly/SWTJ1) features Narmin and Javanshir from Azerbaijan and Adrian from Slovakia.  All three were participants in the SWT which aims to allow foreign students  "to share their culture and ideas with people of the United States through temporary work and travel opportunities."  These students are issued J-1 visas and the program has a long history and is one of many people-to-people diplomacy programs which aim to promote mutual understanding.  Javanshir enjoyed his first summer as a SWT participant so much that he convinced his sister and another friend to join the following summer (2019) when all three worked at the Jordan Pond House in Acadia National Park.  Javanshir even baked some of the famous Jordan Pond House popovers!  Adrian did not work at a national park but visited several NPS sites, including Zion National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite National Park, and Glacier National Park) during the travel portion of his experience in 2019.